Shingles for covering roofs or walls of buildings usually come in large sheets of textured material in typical sizes of 30 cms.times.90 cms (12.times.36 inches) and 32.5 cms.times.97.5 cms (13.times.39 inches). They are laid down in a vertically overlapping and horizontally offset pattern in combination with interlaid strips of felt or other waterproof material, then nailed down to the underlying plywood or lath structure. The installation of shingles on roofs or outside walls of a building is an arduous, hazardous and time-consuming operation. Roofers must work on steep surfaces, bending or kneeling to cut, position then hammer down or staple shingles in a regular and esthetically attractive pattern. Roofers are often paid as a function of the total area they cover or the number of shingle packs they use in a workday. Accordingly, they must strive to work in an efficient, yet rapid manner. When covering a rectangular area such as the face of a wall or the slope of a roof, roofers have found it most efficient and practical to lay shingles in a diagonal pattern beginning in the lower left corner of the area to be covered in the case of a right-handed roofer, or in the lower right corner in the case of a left-handed roofer. In most cases, the roofer begins by trimming down the pre-existing roofing material by a few centimeters around the eaves making sure that the trimmings are swept clear off the surface to be roofed where they could interfere with the correct installation and waterproofing effect of the new roofing material. In order to establish the base of the diagonal shingle-laying pattern, the roofer must cut a first set or rack of shingles wherein each shingle is shorter than the one that it overlaps by a fixed distance called the sidelap. Depending upon the amount of weather exposure between the shingles, i.e., the width by which an underlying shingle protrudes from under the one immediately above it, a rack comprises an uncut base shingle and 5 to 6 cut shingles of progressively shorter lengths wherein the top and shortest shingle has a length corresponding approximately to the width of the sidelap. Depending upon the vertical dimension of the roof, the roofer must also cut shingles to create a specific number of racks. As the roofing operation reaches the opposite vertical edge of the roofing surface, racks must be used in a reverse pattern with the shortest shingle at the base and the longest at the top. Most often the final rack of shingles must be trimmed to better match the edge of the roof. Shingles must also be gauged and cut in oblique vertical forms when covering the edges of trapezoidal roof areas as well as when meeting valleys and ridges or covering gables. When installing clay or fibered cement tiles rather than shingles, the roofer is confronted with unique tile-cutting difficulties due to the weight, thickness, and undulated shape or other unique mechanical characteristic of the tile. Tiles must often be cut to fit row ends, valleys and hips with an electric saw above the roof surface in very precarious positions.
Roofers are often times called upon to install skylights, dormers, awnings, gutters, facia boards, sidings, shiplaps and other structures that require a multiplicity of special tools.
It is no surprise that the prior art offers a variety of gauges and cutting guides for facilitating and expediting the various roofing operations. Templates such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,266,388 Flood, aligning fixtures such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,144 Barnett, III, and cutting guides such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,010,582 Nixon are very practical devices. However, their weights, sizes and general unwieldiness can be a real hindrance which too often complicates rather than alleviates the tasks of the tradesman operating on a slanted roof top.
There is a need for a simple, yet practical set of devices which would cooperate when combined in different arrangements to assist the roofer in the numerous aspects of a roofing operation.